November 1, 1995 Chicago, IL. Streams Online Media Development has announced a new Internet World Wide Web audience measurement service that reports where people have surfed from to get to a site connected to the service, called "Lilypad." The new system can tell if a Web user came from another Web site, a "bookmark" in their Web browser, a newsgroup, or even a local file on their hard drive.

Most Web audience measurement programs measure what happens within a Web site, Dominic Tassone, general manager of Streams Online Media Development, told Newsbytes. "We're saying that (usage within a Web site) is very important. Instead, we felt there's a need for how effective Internet advertising is, and how effective is a link in, say HotWired, in getting people to your site," he said.

With Lilypad reports, Internet marketers can negotiate better ad rates and evaluate their online advertising purchases, Streams officials said. "What Lilypad does for marketers is, instead of telling you what part of your Web site is popular with people from different parts of the country, it can tell you exactly how many visits from particular Web sites show up in your log. It also answers the question of how effective your ad is."

Tassone said learning about the number of people who come from bookmarks within browsers can be beneficial. He said advertisers could sponsor a contest where if they come to a site via a bookmark, they could win a prize.

Newsbytes was given an exclusive look at the Lilypad site, which is currently behind a password protected site. We were able to look up usage statistics from Streams' main site. Lilypad told us how many Web surfers came from other Web sites, along with the specific site they came from, along with visitors from newsgroups, hypertext markup language (HTML) files on hard drives, bookmarks, and direct access by directly typing in a uniform resource locator (URL), and "unknown" accesses.

In addition, statistics could be compiled on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis, and comprehensive data is also available.' Plus, accesses from paid links or all links could also be looked up.

Lilypad subscriptions are available at an introductory price of $695 per month, plus a onetime installation fee of $500, through December 31, 1995. Those interested can surf to Streams' Web site at http://www.streams.com , and use a special online registration form.

The Lilypad software is designed to work on any Web server, Tassone added.

Bob Woods. Press Contacts: Dave Skwarczek or Domenico Tassone, Streams Online Media, 312-342-7747, Internet e-mail streams@streams.com.

© 1995 Domenico Tassone.